The chancellor has suggested she may give public sector workers above-inflation pay rises this summer, after independent pay review bodies recommended an increase of 5.5% for teachers and some NHS workers.
Speaking in an interview to be broadcast on Sunday morning, Rachel Reeves said she valued public service workers and knows there is “a cost to not settling”.
The estimated cost of pay rises of 5.5% for teachers and certain NHS staff could reach £3bn, according to the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS). That would be significantly more than the 2.5-3% the Treasury had expected.
Ms Reeves told Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg that a decision on public pay would be made this month.
